Only Without The Rain
by Cocovet
Summary: He was mad enough that day, he didn't need the little blonde Powerpuff to make his day worse.
1. 9:45 AM

For the sake of getting rid of this horrid long hiatus and writer's block, I write this random, random stoof. owo;

Note that I intended to make it a bit short.

Do not own. D8 -

* * *

9:45 in the morning, he grimaced, putting his wristwatch back in it's rightful hiding place underneath his wristband.

He was rarely without his gang of olive skinned individuals or wandering the streets this early in the morning, so he understood why he was getting questioning stares. The nosey good-for-nuthin's didn't make his mood any better, that's for sure, he frowned, not bothering to move out of the way as the citizens of Townsville passed by. Man, he was in such a bad mood, that he couldn't even muster enough enthusiasm to grin as the sounds of yelps and indignant grunts filled his ears.

"Deadbeat punk."

Ace rolled his eyes, clenching his teeth. Like he never heard that one before.

"Good-for-nothing kid."

Grinding his teeth viciously, he pushed past another, not bothering to turn back.

"You stupid green freak!"

No matter how many times he heard that, it still pissed him off to no end. Yeah yeah, he was green, big deal. He already knew, he didn't need to be reminded every freaking day.

What a way to start the day, he frowned deeply, running his fingers through ebony strands of hair. Before he started stomping around Townsville, he woke up to the sound of his parents fighting... Not that he wasn't used to it. And not like he didn't hear it all before. It was always the same thing- "It's thanks to your drinking that our boy doesn't know right from wrong!", "Well maybe if you spent more time with the boy maybe he wouldn't be so mean!", and all that junk. He couldn't get any sleep with them yellin' all the time, he scowled, his eyes narrowing to an annoyed slit.

Ace frowned, strands of hair falling in his face, his eyes trained on the cement sidewalk and the shoes that walked past him.

And to top off his bad day...

He looked back and grimaced, noticing that she was still tailing him.

Her blonde hair bounced in it's two pigtails as she hummed to herself, a small smile playing on her lips as she effortlessly dodged the people's head as she floated by, her exuberant blue eyes concentrating only on him.

Bubbles.

He hastily turned back, his hands clenching from their place in his jacket pockets, an angry snarl lurking on his face.

She'd been following him since this morning.... Why couldn't she just scram already, he frowned, if he wanted to be followed around everywhere, he would have brought his gang.

He quickly turned a corner, hoping she wouldn't follow.

Much to his disappointment, she too turned the corner, and was back on his tail again.

He growled under his breath in frustration, pushing himself to speed up a bit.

The small, blonde child made a small, barely audible, noise in surprise, and she too quickened her pace to keep up with him.

He grinded his teeth angrily.

Okay, that's it.

He stopped his walking abruptly, and felt himself smile in satisfaction at the fact that he caused his stalker to squeal in surprise when her small body collided with his back.

"Ow!" She squeaked, rubbing her nose in pain, wincing slightly.

He was quick to whip around, eyeing her suspiciously through his shades and narrowed eyes.

"Okay, whaddy'a want, you little squirt?" He asked casually, lowering his shades to look her straight in the eye, causing her to blink. "I'm not in the mood for you PowerPuff Girls today, so cut to the chase. Whadd'ya up to?"

Bubbles blinked once more, before glaring at him slightly, clearing her voice in a haughty manner as she regained composure.

"What are YOU up to, Ace?" She inquired, also eyeing him suspiciously.

"I asked first, kid." He grinned, causing her face to fall slightly much to his amusement. "Now what are you up to?"

"Hmph." She crossed her arms sulkily, her lower lip sticking out childishly. "Well, if you must know I'm keeping an eye on you."

"No kidding?" He frowned, raising an eyebrow as he pushed his shades back up. "What for?"

"Just in case you're up to no good." She replied as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, causing his frown to deepen.

"Yeah, well." He continued to frown, starting to walk away from her casually. "Not today, so you can just--"

"No!"

"What?" He frowned once more, turning his head slightly to look at her in frustration.

"How do I know you're telling the truth?" She questioned, and much to his dismay she was floating after him once again. "Blossom says bad guys lie all the time."

"Yeah, she would say that." He growled slightly, beginning to feel annoyed with the little blonde girl. "Look kid, I'm seriously not in the mood, so--"

"No!" The blonde pouted, her arms behind her back as she flew behind him. "What kind of superhero would I be if I--"

"Look kid, I said beat it!" He snapped angrily, whipping around to snarl at her, his teeth clenched. Bubbles flinched, wincing slightly at the tone of his voice. "I already said I wasn't in the mood to play around, so scram already!"

Bubbles stared at him wide eyes and floated down onto the cement sidewalk. He stared back at her, still glaring at her, his breathing uneven and shaky.

Her lip started to quiver, her wide blue beginning to fill with tears, much to his horror.

"Aw, crap." He cursed, his eyes widening, approaching his cautiously. "Look, I--"

She began to wail loudly, her tears quickly trailing down her face. Startled passersby stared down at the little girl before turning to him to give the teen dirty looks. He stared back at them, his mouth open slightly in shock.

"Did that hooligan make Bubbles cry?" He heard from somewhere behind him as Bubbles continued to sob, his eyes widening more. "How awful!"

"Have you no shame? She may have superpowers, but she's still a little girl!"

"Dude, what's your problem, man?"

Aw, crap.

His teeth clenched, he quickly dragged the blonde child from the crowd by the hand, looking for a place that was peace and quiet.

"This'll do." He sighed to himself, mumbling over the little girl's sobs, and dragged her into the alley.

Picking her up, he stood her on a nearby garbage can so that she was eye-to-eye, watching her grudgingly as she continued to cry and wipe away tears from her already tear stained-face.

"Okay, look." He said in a hushed tone, narrowing his eyes slightly. She looked at him through her tears, sobs still escaping her lips. "I'm sorry, 'kay? Just stop your blubbering!"

Bubbles continued to sob, even louder if possible, his words unsoothing. He cringed, feeling slightly guilty for making her cry.

The nosey losers were right about one thing; she was just a kid. Her super powers obviously didn't protect her feelings.

Sighing, he placed both his hands on her shoulders and tilted his head downwards so he look her straight in the eyes. The small blonde girl opened her eyes to look at him, rendered to occasional sniffles and tears.

"Look, if I get you breakfast will you shut up?" He asked, hiding his impatience.

Sniffling, the blonde girl wiped her tears away and nodded, causing Ace to rub his temples.

"Here." He sighed, digging into his pocket, pulling out a handkerchief and offering it to her. He rolled eyes slightly when she scrunched her nose in distaste, eyeing the fabric in his hand. " Don't worry, it's clean."

"Oh." She croaked, dabbing at her eyes before using it to blow her nose, allowing the older boy to pick her up, getting to her feet once he set her down. Childishly, she looked up at him, holding out her hand to give the handkerchief back to him.

"Just keep it." He cringed, grudgingly leading her out of the alley. She nodded, doing her best to keep up with him despite having super speed to outrun anyone.

"Well, let's get outta here then. I know a fast and cheap place to eat."

* * *

n.n;


	2. 9:56 AM: Breakfast

"Well, hurry up. Get inside already."

He rolled his eyes at how slow the little girl was from behind his shades and held the door open for her, and grimaced at how nice he was being. Not only did he offer to buy her breakfast just to shut her up, he even bent backwards for her because she wanted to go to another, more "nicer and cleaner" restaurant, as she put it between her wailing.

How did she do it, he wondered, feeling disgusted with himself. How did she get him to succumb to her wishes so easily?

She remained quiet as she walked into the small diner, the sounds of her sniffles, the small talk between the customers and the jingling of the bell refusing to let the small restauraunt fall into silence.

He inspected the small diner, shoving his hands back into his pockets as he did so, his grumpy scowl remaining.

The diner was small, and it looked like something you can find way back in the '50's or somethin'. Checkerboard tiles, leather stools and leather seats in the booths. It WAS pretty nice.

Feeling the questioning stares of both the workers and customers, Ace ducked his head down and grimaced.

Just wanted he wanted, he rolled his eyes from behind his shades. To be seen with a Powerpuff Girl. What would the boys say if they found out?

Continuing to grimace, he nudged her towards the back of the diner, the most inconspicious part of the diner, using the collar of his jacket to hide his face, though he was sure everyone knew who he was.

"Oh." Bubbles squeaked, looking up at him with those big blue eyes, digging her heels in the floor in an attempt to slow them down.

Oh yeah. THAT'S how she did.

He pitied the poor sucker she'd attract one day. One look into those baby blue eyes, and they'd immediately be underneath her spell. Destined to be under her thumb for eternity.

"What is it now?" He asked gruffly, continuing to grimace as he attempted to nudge her forward, but her super strength proved to be too much from him, much to his dismay.

"Me and my sisters and the Professor always sit in the fron---"

"Yeah well today you're sitting in the back." He interrupted, nudging her forward once more.

The blonde remained quiet but trudged forward, causing him to roll his eyes in exasperation. She was pouting. He knew she was.

Damn kids, he mentally cursed as he stopped momentarily, waiting for the blonde child to slide into the booth before sliding into the seat across from her. Leaning back, he stretched his arms and allowed them to fall on the boards of the booth casually, avoiding any eye contact with the little blonde girl.

He looked around the room, frowning deeply. Yep, everyone definitely noticed him coming in with the blonde Powerpuff.

Great.

"Um.. Ace?"

Without batting an eye or even looking at her, he knew she was fidgeting nervously, swinging her small legs underneath the table.

"What is it, kid?" He asked, his voice dull and bored.

"Are you okay?"

Ace raised an eyebrow and turned back to look at her, taken aback.

She stared up at him, her wide eyes unblinking, and he then realized just how innocent the question was. No hint of sarcasm or anger. Not even a hint of a grudge.

"What makes you ask, kid?" He couldn't help but ask, curiousity getting the best of him.

"Well.." She paused, pursing her lips shyly, continuing to swing her legs childishly. "You're kinda being mean today."

"I'm always mean." He said casually, unable to contain a grin, looking around the diner once again.

"Not Ace-mean, I mean like 'mean-mean'! " She exclaimed, not taking her eyes off him once.

He raised an eyebrow, throwing her an odd look.

" 'Ace-mean'?" He questioned, shaking his head in exasperation but his grin remaining. "What the hell is 'Ace-mean'?"

She tilted her side to the side, her eyes trailing to the ceiling thoughtfully.

"Well." The blonde began, a finger to her chin. She turned her gaze back to the olive-skinned man, smiling a bit. "You're mean because you bully and tease kids and boss around Snake, Little Arturo---"

"Lil' Arturo." He corrected, watching her with interest. She rolled her eyes, but continued on.

"....And Grubber and Big Billy. Even though Big Billy is bigger than you. He can probably beat you up. And make you cry. The Professor says he's a kid at heart...." She trailed off, realizing that she had begun to ramble.

"Okay, yeah, sounds like me." He grinned, breaking eye contact with her to check the time. "What's the difference this time, kid?"

Huh. Only 9:56.

"Well, you're still a big meanie, but..." She paused, looking up at him thoughtfully. "You seem upset. Did you and your Gang get into a fight?"

The olive-skinned man raised an eyebrow, taken aback. Was she actually worried?

"No." He replied, turning back to look at her. "Nothing like that, kiddo."

"Then what's the matter?" She asked innocently, watching him with wide, curious eyes.

He swore he could'a saw a tint of worry in those big blue eyes. He could'a swore.

"Good morning!" A voice cut in cheerily, and from the corner of his eye he could see the figure of a slightly overweight woman in a waitress uniform. "Sorry for the wait, folks.... Oh, hi Bubbles!"

Ace stiffened, immediately averting his eyes, staring at everything but the two females nearby.

"Hi, Mrs. Fargo!" The young girl chirped, smiling brightly at the woman. "How are you today?"

"Oh, I'm just fine, Bubbles. Thank you for asking." The woman smiled softly, her eyes trailing to Ace momentarily. "How are you, dear?"

Ah crap, he grimaced, sinking lower into his seat uncomfortably.

"I'm okay." The blonde giggled, beaming happily.

"That's good to hear." She smiled again, her eyes trailing back to the child before finding their way back to the olive-skinned man, who was still averting her gaze. "Is this young man your boyfriend?"

His posture stiffened, and he swore his face felt like it was on fire but he continued to look away. Boyfriend?! Was she crazy?

"No." She giggled, as if the very idea was funny. "He's my sister's boyfriend."

The waitress laughed, and the teen sunk even lower into his seat.

He was either bright red in devastation or it was just really hot in the diner.

"Oh, I see. I beg your pardon." She continued to laugh, much his dismay. "So, what will it be, young man?"

Regaining composure, he grinned cooly up at the woman, lowering his shades slightly to gaze the woman. "Yeah, I'll have a banana split sundae and a soda. Hold the ice."

The waitress quickly jotted down his order on a small notepad, smiling softly at the blonde PowerPuff.

"What will it be for you, dear?"

"The usual, please!" The blonde giggled, immediately sitting straight, entwining her fingers and placing them on the table.

"Coming right up." She chirped, beginning to walk off. "Your orders will be ready in a few minutes."

And with that, the older woman made her way towards another table. Ace watched the woman wait on a few tables until she finally disappeared into the kitchen.

"So, really." He blinked and turned to her, her voice immediately bringing him back to reality. "What's the matter?"

"What?" He frowned, raising an eyebrow. The blonde immediately looked down at the table sheepishly, fidgeting underneath the table.

"W-well, w-when I'm really sad or upset about something, I talk to my sisters or the Professor and I feel really better afterwards." She stammered sheepishly. "Well, mostly Blossom because Buttercup laughs at me, and then I get even more upset and throw my toys at her, and then she gets mad too."

"No kidding, eh?" He grinned, placing his chin on his hand, using his arm to support his head. He could easily picture Buttercup doing that.

The little girl before him nodded, staring at him intently with her wide eyes.

"The Professor says it's good to get things off your chest." She nodded knowingly, looking slightly proud at the knowledge she shared. She smiled at him once again, and he realized her tears were nowhere in sight. "So that's why I asked you what's the matter."

He shook his head, continuing to grin, unable to believe this little girl's thoughtfulness. She continued to watch the olive-skinned teen curiously, tilting her head to the side.

He leaned across the table, causing her watch him warily and back away a little, causing his grin to widen. He reached over and laid his hand on her head. After a second, the blonde looked at him in confusion, pouting soon afterward once he started to mess up her hair.

"Just been having a bad day, kid." He told her simply, ruffling her hair with a grin. "Don't worry 'bout it."

"Are you sure?" She asked once he pulled his hand away, staring at him expectantly.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm sure." He grinned, leaning back once more.

"Sorry for the wait!" The woman called out as she neared the table, smiling once she caught their attention.

"It's okay." The blonde giggled cheerfully.

Seriously, her bubbly-ness was contagious.

"For the young man.." The waitress began, placing his 'breakfast' before him. "A soda and a banana split sundae."

"Thanks, Ma'am." He grinned. He didn't bother to wait for Bubbles to get her breakfast before eating his.

"And the Usual for Bubbles!" She chirped, placing a plate in front of the blonde child. "A peanut-butter sandwhich with banana slices."

Raising an eyebrow, he raised his head up from his breakfast, watching the little girl munch happily on the sandwhich.

"You're a weird kid, you know that?" He told her. He couldn't help but want that sandwhich.

Bubbles beamed once again at him and giggled, swinging her legs happily.


	3. 10:40 AM: Fighting Boredom

"You ready, kid?"

He couldn't believe it. Out all the people he could'a been doing this with.. His boys, the RowdyRuff Boys, Princess (she was that mean-spirited enough to pull it off, too. Little brat.), Mojo Jojo, Fuzzy, Him...

He was doing it with a Powerpuff Girl.

The bubbly blue Powerpuff at that.

Especially at 10:40 in the morning.

* * *

"So what are we going to do now?" The blonde asked, floating not too far behind him.

She was still following him around. Like a lost lil' puppy dog.

"You still followin' me around, kid?" He asked dully, his hands casually making their way into his pockets. He wasn't in that much of a bad mood anymore, but he sure didn't want her following him the whole day. It didn't exactly make you look good when you were seen with a little girl who's just learned to add 2 plus...Uh…2, or somethin'.

Even now as he looked around, he could see the suspicious looks he was getting.

"Uh-huh." She replied, and he didn't even have to look at her to tell that she was nodding

"Right…" He grimaced, running his fingers through his hair.

Great.

"So what are we going to do?"

"Jesus, I don't know, kid." He snapped, clenching his hands from inside the pockets of his jacket. Slowly, he could feel his frustration bubbling up once more.

"Well, what do you usually do?" The blonde questioned, floating so that she was right beside him instead of following behind. He could feel her large blue eyes watching him. "One time when it was raining we couldn't go outside because…Well... It was raining. If we went outside, we would have got wet."

"Uh-huh. Yeah, right." He sighed, only half-listening to her rambling as he looked around at the curious faces.

"And we were really bored, so we played the Powerpuff Girls. I don't like being bored." She continued on.

"Wait, wait, wait!" He grinned, stopping around to look at her, his bony hands pulled out of his pockets to stop her from going any further. The little girl blinked, stopping just inches away from him.

"What?"

"YOU were 'playing' the Powerpuff Girls?" He questioned his grin widening as the girl nodded sheepishly and sunk lower to the ground.

"Um… Yes." She squeaked looking to the side sheepishly as his grin widened even more.

The olive-skinned man burst into laughter despite the little girl's embarrassment as she floated even lower towards the ground, the sound of her feet touching the ground unheard over his obnoxiously loud laughter. It was her turn to feel embarrassed about being seen with the older man as he laughed shamelessly, an arm draped around a lamppost and his free hand clutching at him stomach.

"A-ace! Shhh!" She squeaked once more indignation, floating up once more and he soon felt her small hands covering his mouth in an attempt to silence his laughter.

"T-the Powerpuff Girls playing 'The Powerpuff Girls'!" He managed to stammer out, continuing to laugh despite her attempts.

"Ace!" She cried out childishly, and he didn't have to look up to know that she was pouting again.

"Well how do ya expect me to react!" He asked between laughter and removed his shades, wiping at tears that formed from laughing too hard. "You're a Powerpuff Girl pretending to be a Powerpuff Girl!"

The blonde giggled after a minute of looking in deep thought, and he felt another grin creeping onto his face.

"I guess it sort of sounds funny." She said thoughtfully, lowering herself back onto the ground.

"See?" He grinned, feeling her tiny little kid hands pry themselves from his mouth. "I told ya it was weird."

"Well, we were bored." She huffed indignantly.

"Right, right." He continued to grin, his hands finding their way back into his pockets and he resumed his walking.

"And it wasn't like we were ourselves." The blonde continued. "Buttercup was Blossom and she wore a big red bow. It looked really really pretty on her but if I told her that she'd get mad and yell again."

"Again?" He asked casually, glancing at her from the corner of his eye. "Is that why you were so weepy today?"

"Well, yeah." She replied, and he could hear both discomfort and slight sadness in her tone.

"Yeah? Well that sucks." He stated simply, but truth be told he kinda felt sorry for her.

She didn't reply unless you counted the slight whimpery sound she let out afterwards. Feeling slightly uncomfortable with the little girl's behaviour, he sighed, tilting his head back.

"So who did your other sister play?" He asked in an attempt to break the silence. "Ah, the bossy one."

The blonde giggled, quickening her pace once more to keep up with him. "Blossom was a monster, and I was Buttercup."

"Then who was the little blonde one?" He grinned, turning his head slightly in interest to glance at her.

"The Professor was." She replied, also smiling. "He looked silly with his hair in pigtails and my dress."

The teen snickered, shaking his head at her, albeit amused. "Man, you Powerpuffs are weird."

"We were bored." She stated again, seeing her pout again before turning his head again. "What do YOU do when you're bored?"

He turned back to grin at her again, raising an eyebrow questioningly as he stopped once again. The blonde Powerpuff Girl also stopped, blinking in confusion as she stared at him, tilting her head to the side. When he didn't say anything right away and kept grinning at her, the little girl shifted uncomfortably and broke the silence.

"What?"

"You really wanna know?" He asked, the amused grin ceasing to leave his face.

"Umm…" She backed away slightly, hesitating a bit. She averted her eyes nervously, bringing her hand to her mouth indecisively. "Well…"

"Yeah, well I expected as much." He smirked, feigning disappointment as he turned from her, beginning to walk again.

"What?" He heard her squeak and he could tell that she was pouting once again, causing his smirk to widen.

"Well, y'know." He began, glancing at her teasingly as he continued to walk. "I should've known that you would'a said no. I just forgot that you were too much of a scaredy cat to do THAT."

He yelped when he was yanked back suddenly and stared at the girl in slight surprise as she looked into his eyes in determination.

"Let's do it then." She demanded childishly, sticking her tongue out at him.

He smirked triumphantly, pulling away from her.

"That's what I like to hear, kid."

* * *

The little girl looked up at him with those big blue eyes and smiled brightly, and nodded her head.

"Uh-huh." She told him eagerly, peering out from her spot behind the bush, her eyes examining her environment before giggling behind her hands.

"You know what to do?" He questioned once more, eyeing her from behind his shades.

"Uh-huh."

"Okay, good." He grinned, stepping out from behind the bush. "Let's go."

The motley crew snuck out from behind the bush, the little girl covering her mouth to keep from giggling excitedly and the olive-skinned man smirking as they neared the slightly large house.

Step by step, they slowly reached the top of the stairs, both of them grinning as they made their way to the door, both their backs against the wall as they crept towards it.

Without a word, both understood what was about to happen. The little girl couldn't help but giggle once more but quickly muffled her laughter when the man brought his finger to his lips, telling her to shut up.

His bony finger crept towards the doorbell, but ceased to move when it was just inches away from it. He turned to his "partner-in-crime", anticipating her reaction. Immediately, the girl smiled brightly and nodded in approval.

He nodded as well, smirking and held his finger near the doorbell. He used his free hand to count down, mouthing the words as he went on.

1…

2…

3…

The olive-skinned teen pressed the button, and immediately after he heard the chiming noises the doorbell made and the footsteps from inside rushing towards the door.

Bursting into laughter, the man scrambled down the stairs with the little girl floating after him, giggling uncontrollably.

"What the hell?" The voice of a rather irritated man was soon heard as they turned the corner. "You little brats! Get back here!"

The sound of feet hitting the hard ground caused the leader of The Gangreen Gang to grin once more and quicken his pace until suddenly he couldn't feel the ground underneath his feet anymore. Baffled, he glanced up and realized that the little girl had picked him up with ease and was flying off with him, and quickly at that. He flashed another smirk at her, turning his gaze away.

Playing "Knock Knock, Ginger" with a Powerpuff Girl certainly was out of the norm, that's for sure.

But at that moment as the man's shrieking soon became too far to hear and his surroundings soon becoming a blur, he couldn't think of anyone better to do it with.

* * *

Woops. The chapters to this story were actually supposed to be short, but writing them actually takes me more than an hour. XD;

The fact that I didn't get reviews didn't bother me much, but it made me SUPER HAPPY to get a review from Kanashimi-chan. 8DD It made me totally grin ear-to-ear when it turned out that Kanashimi-chan even liked the story! Thanks so much, yo!


	4. 5:43 PM

Oh god, it's been about 3 years since I wrote a chapter for this story. **;;;** That is so sad. Sorry about that, I guess I lost inspiration due to a breakup with a man that once shared the same interest in Powerpuff Girls but I'll try to bring it back! I made a Deviant Art account and posted some Powerpuff Girls related art I made on Paint. All except one is based on CrystalGemMaker's stories 'Turn off the lights, turn up the volume" and 'But we're different!' heh. If you're interested, look up my username: Cocovet .

Anyways, please enjoy!

…It does get a little dark towards the end, I apologize for that.

* * *

"So rumour has its thats yous been seens with a Powerpuff."

It was only the two of them so he knew exactly who was talking, but he looked up anyway. He looked across the table at his second-in-command, lowering his cards to raise an eyebrow questioningly. It wasn't at all surprising that word had gotten out, really. It wasn't often that someone like him hung out with a little kid. It wasn't that he wanted to in the first place, but how do you shake off a kindergartener that can crush you with her pinky finger?

..If she had fingers, anyway. Bunch of freaks.

"Yeah?" He looked back down at his card, observing his hand dully. "So what? Are you going somewhere with this?" He asked nonchalantly as he hid his annoyance with incredible ease. It was an ability he perfected over the years of knowing and forming his gang. After all nobody wanted a leader who was constantly yelling, and intimidation could only last for so long.

"Lots of peoples seens you dining downtowns yesterday. Lots." The second-in-command, Snake, stated as he narrowed his eyes suspiciously at his leader.

Frowning, the leader of the group leaned against his elbows and stared back at him coldly. After many years, his lisp stayed strong and showed no signs of improving; but Ace was well aware that his comrade and closest friend had indeed changed. Gradually, Snake's back bone grew and Ace found himself butting heads with the boy as the other became more defiant. Lately the other boy had also become more mouthy, but all in all Ace still had the advantage. Despite the boy's growth of backbone, old habits died hard and he would eventually cave and give in with just a little intimidation tricks.

"Listen, Sanford." He began, putting as much emphasis on the other's name as he could muster. He smirked at as his comrade's harsh gaze faltered slightly upon hearing his actual name being used, but he continued on. "I appreciate your obvious 'concern' and stuff- but this ain't any of your business, capiche? What I do on my own time doesn't concern you and you should be smart enough to butt out."

"It's just weirds is all." Snake snorted, clearly recovering. "Hows am I supposed to reacts when I hears that the leader of the Gangreen Gang is being buddy-buddy with a Powerpuffs? You hates the Powerpuffs. We've played pranks on the Powerpuffs, and on mores than one occasion we've tried to take downs the Powerpuffs so excuse me if I gots the wrong ideas about you."

"And what, pray tell, did you have wrong about me?" He asked through clenched teeth. It took all his strength he could muster to refrain from kicking his skinny ass.

"That yous was a fit leader. Or maybes yous just turned soft."

Their game of cards was quickly forgotten as Snake was pinned underneath their table- an original junkyard piece indeed- and their worn-out cards fell and spread out across the floor. Ace grabbed his second-in-command roughly by the collar of his shirt. Blinded by his anger, he ignored Snake's pained expression from scraping against the table as pulled him back up to his feet just as quickly as he pushed him down.

"You listen here, I'm getting tired of putting up with whatever little boy puberty problems you're going through lately."

His words came out low and threatening, a tone he very rarely used with one of his own, but it seemed to be working as Snake's mouthy attitude quickly diminished. His grip tightened around his shirt collar and he brought the younger boy's face closer in an almost menacing manner. "And I'm tired of your smart-ass comments about every little fucking thing I say, you got that? I've only been putting up with your disrespect for so long because you're one of the boys and you're like a brother to me, you ungrateful little brat."

Tossing him back to the floor, he continued, "So what if I've been seen with a stupid Puff? What I do during my spare time is none of your business, and you should know better than I do that the annoying brats breathe down all of our necks whenever they get the chance. I don't know why you're getting your panties up in a bunch; I don't **enjoy **having some killjoy patrolling my every move. Hell for all you know, I could be plotting a way to get rid of the little brat once and for a-"

The door of their hangout swung open, the loud creaking of the old thing a dead giveaway. The rest of his small gang— Lil' Arturo (now shortened to just Arturo) holding a white plastic bag, Big Billy holding the door open and Grubber holding a large box of pizza over his head—walked in without batting an eye. They were pretty used to seeing a mess.

" 'Ey boss, we brought the pizza!" Arturo was the first to speak. His excitement for the greasy food faltered slightly as he tried to figure out where to place the plastic bag. He raised an eyebrow, looking between the mess and the two boys. "What happened here?"

The other two turned their attention to the rest of the group, Big Billy shutting the door behind him as Grubber also struggled to find a place to put the pizza.

"Me and Snake here was just rough housin'." Ace answered, quickly finding a casual grin. Quick thinking was another skill he perfected.

"Rough housing?" Arturo repeated, obviously buying into the half-lie but confused as to why they were fighting in the first place anyways.

"Yeah, we were just fooling around. I guess it just got out of hand." He replied, shrugging as he glanced towards the other boy. "Isn't that right, Snake?"

All eyes were on Snake at this point, especially Ace's as stared at him expectantly. After all, the second-in-command was always expected to back up the leader no matter the circumstance.

"...Yes sir." He mumbled, barely making eye contact as he got up off the floor. With a grin still plastered on his face, Ace nodded in satisfaction over his victory.

"Yeah, now help us clean up this mess will ya?" Taking the plastic bag out of Arturo's hand, he managed to kick the table back up with one foot and placed the bag on it. "I'm starving!"

* * *

It had been a few days since the incident, and since he had seen the little brat who caused the trouble. The incident went unmentioned between him and Snake and went unnoticed by the others. They were none the wiser to his half-lie while Snake merely kept his mouth shut and listened **much** better.

Despite how things returned to slightly normal, he didn't spend all his time with his gang anymore, despite the popular belief that he did. As a matter of fact, he was alone at that moment- sitting on a bench alone as he threw a ball against a building from across the street.

"Hi!" Came the squeaky yet familiar voice came from behind.

...The keyword being 'was'.

"You again?" He questioned with a grimace, rolling his eyes before resuming the ball-throwing as the blonde Powerpuff floated down the seat next to him. "Don't you have anything better to do than to pester me?"

The Powerpuff- Bubbles- eyed him thoughtfully, her head tilting to the side in thought (which he had to admit was kinda cute) before replying, "Most of the time yeah. I can think of a hundred things I'd rather do."

"Great," he muttered. He couldn't help but feel offended by that. "So why don't you run... float along and do that instead? I got things to do."

"You're just bouncing throwing a ball!"

He glanced at her through his shades, rolling his eyes and sighing before looking away again. He lifted a finger and pointed in front of her at what she now realized was a bus stop sign.

Oh.

"Oh." She said simply, swinging her legs as she looked back at the boy. "Where are you going?"

'Away from you' was his automatic thought. Truth be told, he really was just sitting there throwing a ball up until she came along. She didn't need to know that part though, so he merely shrugged as the ball came bouncing back.

"Home." He replied shortly as he threw the ball once again into the busy traffic without a thought. As the ball bounced down the road, a vehicle unexpectedly screeched to halt, causing the kid beside him to gasp and cover her eyes as the man's actions forced the other unexpecting drivers to also panic and try to stop their own cars.

"So it's you!" She screeched indignantly at him, and he cringed as her already high-pitched voice reached inhuman levels.

"What?" Ace frowned as he gingerly held his ears. The kid could seriously be oblivious to how brutal her super powers could be on 'normies' like him. There were probably cats and dogs in the alley somewhere in as much agony as he was.

"Blossom sent me down here because there were complaints about big dis..dis.. Disturbances in the traffic downtown!" She soon returned his frown, though hers was disapproving rather than annoyed. Bubbles folded her arms across her chest, now floating off and above the bend to meet his eye.

Staring back at her, he shrugged it off casually and he knew on some level that bothered her. It was fairly obvious as she made strangling gestures when he looked away from her.

"Don't worry about it, kid. Look, they're going on as normal now." He smirked, choosing to ignore the screams of indignation and insults thrown his way as they went by. It was sort of satisfying for him to still be able to cause trouble. "Now that you know what the problem is, you can go now. Thanks." The ball soon came rolling back and leaned over to grab it but the stupid kid managed to snatch it before he could even stretch out his arm. Yet another fun game the Powerpuff interfered with. Looking up at her, the sight of the blonde floating about his head and holding the ball above her head with her tongue out tauntingly did nothing to calm his anger.

"Give it back, Bubbles." He demanded calmly. One couldn't tell that he was angry from the tone of his voice and his casual pose, but he was pissed. Funny how one little girl could test his practiced patience within seconds.

The little girl's eyes twinkled with mischief as she shot him a smug look, sticking out her tongue and blowing a raspberry. She then shook her head and turned her body towards him, her eyes trailing behind him as she raised the hand holding the ball behind her head.

"Nope." Bubbles replied, and before he could stop her she thrust the ball with all might and as far as she could— which to be fair was pretty far.

"Aw, what the hell Bubbles!" He growled out, watching as the ball quickly disappeared from his sight. He was pissed, but the same time he couldn't help but feel bad at the thought that some unexpecting sucker would eventually get hit in the head by that ball.

"And once again, the day is saved thanks to the Powerpuff Girls." She narrated, giggling to herself as she floated back down to her seat next to him.

"You're damn annoying, kid. You know that?" He sighed, forcing himself to relax on the bench and praying that the girl would be satisfied with her effort and leave.

Bubbles remained quiet, a thoughtful yet slightly look on etched on her face.

"I get that a lot." She replied, swinging her legs of the edge as she sat there.

'I wonder why', he thought to himself sarcastically. He didn't dare say that out loud. He had heard about the incident where the blonde just snapped and brutally beat Mojo Jojo to a pulp a couple years back, and he didn't want to deal with the aftermath if he had managed to piss her off. He knew his limits. He raised his eyebrow at her, bringing a hand to his open mouth.

"No way." He gasped from behind his hand, pulling off a convincing act of surprise.

"I know!" She replied, the very thought confusing even herself. She continued, her legs still swinging absentmindedly, "I don't know what it is that's annoying, but my sisters say that I'm too loud and that I talk too much but I can't help it. I can't help that I like to talk about things that I like. Like flowers or puppies." She pouted to herself, her legs slowing to a stop as her mood fell considerably. "It's not fair that everyone gets annoyed with things I can't change. It's not fair that people don't like things that make me me..."

Uncomfortable with thought of her crying again, which he felt was coming soon, hesitantly reached over, ruffling her hair in an attempt to comfort her. He wasn't good at comforting and knew it.

"Cheer up, kid." Ace told her, not making eye contact because he knew looking at her would him feel even more uncomfortable. "You're no different from anyone else in this hellhole. Believe me, I know this town like the back of my hand and I say everyone can be annoying and a pain in my ass. Trust me, you can be worse."

"You mean it?" She asked hesitantly, unsure of whether she should believe a man who was supposedly her enemy.

"Yeah." He muttered, wondering why in the hell he was still sitting there with her. "Compared to most, you're a damn breath of sunshine."

Bubbles smiled at him appreciatively, her cheerful mood slowly returning.

"Thanks!" She giggled, but then quickly frowning as she realized his "comforting" gesture messed up her hair. "But you have to stop messing up my hair; I tried really hard to make it pretty!"

Ace smirked, finally finding something that annoyed her. "No can do, kid." He taunted, a little relieved that their previous topic changed. "Think of it as revenge for you watching me like a hawk all the damn time."

Unsatisfied with his reply, she gave a weak glare and blew another raspberry in his direction, causing him to snicker. "Whatever." She huffed, her legs once again swinging off the edge. "Anyway, what time is it?"

Raising his wrist, he pulled down his wristband hiding his watch and read the time aloud to the blonde. "It's 5:43, kid."

Floating off of the bench, she quietly read the bus schedule nearby, turning her head in his direction in confusion.

"P.M?" She asked.

"Duh." He replied sarcastically, rolling his eyes.

"Well, you missed your bus 20 minutes ago." Bubbles muttered while pouting, a little put off by his tone of voice.

"Ah, crap." He sighed, sinking lower into his seat. "When does the next bus come? Check the time for me, will you?"

Obediently, she scanned the schedule, mumbling to herself as she read through it.

"Um, it says the next one comes at 6:40 PM." She replied, looking over her shoulder towards him.

"Great." He sighed, running his fingers through his hair as he watched as Bubbles slowly made her way back to the bench. It didn't look like she was going to leave anytime soon.

"Don't worry." She chirped, sitting back down as she smiled brightly at him. "I'll keep you company until the next bus comes!"

"Gee thanks kid, you're a real saint." He groaned, causing her to giggle.

"Yep, that's me." She stated proudly, which in turn caused him to roll his eyes and her to giggle once again at his reaction.

"Just don't bore me to sleep or I'll miss my bus again." He said, accepting the fact that she wouldn't leave him alone even if he ran off.

"Don't worry, even if you fell asleep I'd shake you awake and keep on talking." She replied, grinning cheekily up at him. He couldn't help but laugh at this, shaking his head at the thought.

"You know that's sort of evil." He smirked, resting his arms against the top of the bench. "I didn't think a Powerpuff could pull off something so mean."

"So I'm human too, what do you want from me?" She huffed, sticking her tongue at him.

The remaining 60 minutes of waiting was spent listening to the little girl talk on and off about her day among other random topics and him occasionally adding a snarky comment, causing her to glare at him or stick her tongue out in indignation. Not once did she actually raise a hand to hurt him, much to his relief. Other times they would fall into small bouts of silence, leaving her to hum tunes to herself, and he found himself humming the same tune afterwards if the tune was catchy enough.

In another bout of silence, the blonde had managed to lull herself to sleep, her petite form curled up on the bench. From past experience of sleeping on playground equipment and even on the ground, he knew sleeping like that wasn't comfortable. Yet there she was curled up on her side, her breathing calm and her mouth slightly open as if sleeping on a hard surface wasn't a problem.

She was also completely vulnerable and unaware of her surroundings.

"_For all you know, I could be plotting a way to get rid of the little brat once and for all." _

He never had the chance to finish his sentence before his gang walked in, but they both knew what he was going to say. Pulling out his switchblade from his jacket pocket, he flipped the sharp out of its safe place, glancing at Bubbles. He had no intention of attempting to hurt the little girl at the time, but there he was with a vulnerable Powerpuff sleeping beside him. It was the perfect chance his gang had been waiting for for years.

..Yet it was different now. The Gangreen Gang had given up long ago on taking over Townsville and getting rid of the Girls. It was a hopeless dream and they all knew it. Yet there she was, sleeping peacefully. He could pull it off if he wanted to, and bring down a Powerpuff Girl once and for all. If he wanted to, he could kill the little girl and know that her sisters wouldn't have the will to continue on without the joy and the laughter of their group. He could if he wanted to.

...But truth be told, he didn't want to. Even he had priorities, and he was definitely above killing a young girl while she was sleeping. After all, The Powerpuff Girls had never attacked him or any villain purposely knowing they were asleep or without reason.

After carefully putting his old switchblade away, he got up from his seat, glancing at Bubbles before proceeding to walk away. He didn't need the bus to get home; it was a mere 20 minutes away anyway. He also didn't need to worry about the little girl still sleeping on the bench either, and it wasn't his responsibility to do so.

He frowned to himself, feeling slightly angry with himself. He had just passed up an opportunity of a lifetime and it was all because of his damned conscience and priorities.

Maybe he really didn't just want the girl to die.

Maybe he did get soft.


End file.
